Food-compacting and dispensing machine

ABSTRACT

The specification discloses a food-compacting machine having a hopper for food and a piston for delivering said food to a loading cup, at least two loading cups mounted on an axle to move about a fixed cam. The food is loaded into the cups in one position, compacted in a second position and the cup is heated and the food is dispensed from the loading cups in a third position. The loading mechanism has a knife synchronized with the movement of the piston to assist in forming the food, and a cam arrangement is synchronized with the piston drive for controlling the loading, compacting and dispensing in synchronism with each other. The effective volume of the cups can be adjusted.

United States Patent Serafini et a1.

[ F OOD-COMPACTING AND DISPENSING MACHINE [72] Inventors: Anthony R. Serafini, 1118 F. St., Erie, Pa. 16505; Joseph A. Balkovic, 1952 W. 33rd St., Erie, Pa. 16508; Richard E. Waller, 534 Shenley Drive; Karl A. Wunch, 3615 W. 12th,, Erie, Pa. 16505 [22] Filed: Feb. 24, 1970 [21] Appl.No.: 14,261

[52] US. Cl ..99/234, 99/427, 17/32 [51 Int. Cl. ..A47j 43/20 [58] Field ofSearch... ..99/234, 244, 349, 372-373,

99/374-375, 376-377, 378-379, 380-381, 382-383, 384, 426-427, 428-429, 439, 336, 440; 17/32; 107/1, 8, 14-15, l6-l7,48; 18/16 E, 16 F;

25/7, 9, 54; 249/92; 100/264, DIG. 5

[45] Jan. 25, 1972 Gilmore ..107/16 Primary ExaminerEdward L. Roberts Assistant Examiner-Arthur 0. Henderson Attorney-Charles L, Lovercheck 5 7] ABSTRACT The specification discloses a food-compacting machine having a hopper for food and a piston for delivering said food to a loading cup, at least two loading cups mounted on an axle to move about a fixed cam. The food is loaded into the cups in one position, compacted in a second position and the cup is heated and the food is dispensed from the loading cups in a third position. The loading mechanism has a knife synchronized with the movement of the piston to assist in forming the food, and a cam arrangement is synchronized with the piston drive for controlling the loading, compacting and dispensing in synchronism with each other. The effective volume ofthe cups can be adjusted.

21 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures all .3

mama] JANZSL'FZ 3636355 SHEET 0F 4 JOSEPH A. bALKovm RICH/m0 E, WALLEQ WUIIH OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to provide an improved foodbody-forming machine capable of forming a spherical ball.

Another object of the invention is to provide a food-shaping machine that is simple in construction, economical to manufacture, and simple and efficient to use, and easy to clean.

Another object is to provide a rotary machine which loads, compacts and ejects continuously.

Another object is to provide an improved heated cavity food dispenser.

Another object is to provide an improved compacting and discharge structure for food products.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a longitudinal, cross-sectional view of the machine according to the invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken at 90 to the section of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the machine.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of one of the compacting stations separated from the machine.

FIG. 5 is another view of an actuating member for the compacting station.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of one of the cams for the compacting station.

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In general terms, the mechanism can be described as one which measures food and compacts and forms food mixtures into desired shapes such as balls, croquettes, patties, etc., and ejects in a three-stage cycle consisting of load, compact and discharge.

Operation of the machine is continuous. The cycle commences with one of the lower cups 24 in position beneath the loading spout 17 at the center of the machine. At this point, the piston 16 inside the storage container moves downward, forcing a quantity of food out of the discharge spout into the lower cup 24.

The cutoff blade 18 severs the ejected food, allowing it to drop into the cup 24. Following this, the lower cup 24 indexes angularly to a position directly below and in line with one of the upper plungers 13.

At this second station, the upper plunger 13 is moved axially downward into the lower cup 24, compacting and forming the food between itself and the lower plunger 23. Obviously the final shape of the product depends upon the configuration of the cup and cavity in the plungers.

After compaction, the upper plunger retracts and the lower cup 24 indexes further angularly to the discharge station 40. As this index occurs, the lower plunger 23 moves axially up out of the lower cup 24, thus enabling the completed product to drop off into a suitable container.

The heater 43 will cause the food to release from the cup.

As can be seen, when the station D cup is at its discharge position D, the station C cup is in the loading position. As the cup 24 of station C proceeds to its compacting and discharge stations, the cup 24 of station D is returning to the loading position. Thus, one complete cycle of the machine produces two food units which are the end products.

Note also that all of the plungers and cups, upper and lower, are designed to permit the inclusion of heating elements 19 and 43. With certain types of foodstufis, such heating facilitates ejection of the finished product and causes it to be completely removed from the cup. The cup could be heated by alternative means; for example, the cup could be heated by radiant heat, induction heat, heated fluid steam, batterypowered heaters, hot air, or electrochemicals.

Drive Mechanism The various necessary motions are achieved through a combination of gears, cams, levers, and springs. Referring to the side section view, all power originates with the horizontal shaft 51, shown at the left of FIG. 2. Shaft 51 may be connected to a suitable prime mover such as a reduced speed electric motor. Cam 53 and bevel gear 54 are mounted on shaft 51. Bevel gear 54, through its mating gear 57, drives the vertical shaft 50 at the same speed as the input shaft 51. Vertical shaft 50 has gear 57, cams 61' and 68 and gear 56 fixed to it.

Downward travel of the piston 16 inside the storage container 15 is achieved by means of the gear train shown at the top of the machine. The first gear 56 in this train is attached to the vertical shaft 50 and rotates continuously. Gear 56 has teeth 70 only on certain portions of its periphery and, therefore, drives its mating gear 71 only intermittently and for only a part of a revolution. This intermittent motion is transmitted to the gear 78 in the train through a combination of slot 74 in sear 71, adjusting screw 76 attached to gear 71 and pin 75 attached to gear 78. The screw 76 provides a means of adjusting the exact degree of rotation of the gear 78 each cycle, since gear 78 will not commence to turn until gear 71 rotates far enough to bring screw 76 into contact with pin 75, thereby controlling the amount of food ejected each cycle.

The gear 78 in turn drives a gear 72 to which is attached a split threaded nut 61". Rotation of this nut 61" forces the threaded piston shaft 60 downward, since the shaft 60 is keyed into its main housing so that it cannot turn.

When the teeth 70 on driving gear 56 disengage from gear 7 l, a recoil spring 51' located between gears 71 and 78 causes gear 71 to turn in the reverse direction until stopped by the engagement of pin 75 with the end of slot 74 furthest from the adjusting screw 76, thereby automatically resetting the adjustment device for the next cycle.

The foregoing described one particular version of the mechanism. It is obvious that, without departing from the fundamental concept, which is to convert a constant rotary motion into an intermittent adjustable motion, the exact details could be modified in any of several ways such as by altering the number and/or extent of the interrupted segments on gear 56, by varying the relative sizes of the gears, possibly by combining the functions of gears 72 and 78 into one single gear, by incorporating additional gears into the train, or by other means. It also is apparent that the final resultant motion can be either linear, as in the present application, or rotary if desired.

The Cutoff The cutoff blade 18 is actuated by double cam 61' mounted on the vertical shaft 50 through a rocker arm 62. The lower cam lobe 63 drives the blade 18 forward to achieve cutoff, and the upper lobe 64 drives it back into the retracted position. This positive motion in both directions precludes any possibility of a jam-up which could result from failure of the blade 18 to move as and when required.

A similar cam 68 is fixed to the vertical shaft 50just above the cutoff blade cam 61' Cam 68, working through a pair of double rocker arms 80 located on either side of the vertical shaft, drives the two upper compacting plungers 13 down and up alternately. A spring 89 and adjusting screw 81 located in the rocker arm linkage provides a means of adjusting the compacting pressure to attain a product of the desired density and firmness. As in the case of the cutoff blade, the double-acting cam 68 provides positive, safe motion of the compacting plungers in both direction. The movement of the cutoff knife is synchronized with the movement of the piston so that cutoff is effected during that interval during which the piston is stationary.

Indexing of the lower main plunger and cup assembly to the various stations is accomplished by the previously mentioned cam 53 attached to the main horizontal power shaft 51. This cam, through a cam follower and gear train as shown, causes the assembly to index as desired alternately clockwise and counterclockwise. Proper indexing in the return direction is attained by maintaining pressure against the cam 53 by means of a recoil spring attached to the lower cup and plunger assembly shaft.

The axial movement of the lower plungers, in order to eject the finished product, is obtained through the cam 11 shown at the bottom of FIG. 2. Cam I1 is stationary and motion is achieved by the two plungers as they index around it.

Disassembly For Cleaning All parts of the machine which contact the food are designed for ready disassembly.

Releasing the catch on the half nut 61" and opening the nut will allow the ejection piston to be withdrawn straight up to clear the top of the storage container. The container is then tilted forward and the plastic liner 90 is removed for washing or storage, as desired.

Tilting the container forward around pivot 100 also withdraws pin 102 holding the cutoff blade cartridge 13 in position. This cartridge can now be removed by withdrawing it straight out of its slot. The knife blade 18 itself is then exposed and can be removed by simply unhooking it from its driving pin 83.

The lower cups and plungers can be removed by giving the cups a quarter-turn and removing them from their bases. The plungers and springs then can be withdrawn.

In the upper compacting stations, the outer liners are retained in a manner similar to that just described, and are similarly released by a partial turn. In the case of the upper plungers, however, since positive retraction is a desirable fea ture, it is necessary that they be firmly attached to their mating parts. in the present design, this is accomplished by means of a slot and pin arrangement which still permits their release and removal by giving them a partial turn, in the same manner as their outer liners.

The machine is made up generally of the frame 10, which has upwardly extending sides and has the cam 11 fixed to the lower part and the hopper support fixed at its upper part. The spaced bearings 44 carry the shaft 82. The shaft 82 is received in cam 11 and carries the assembly made up of the plates 12 and loading stations C and D so that the loading stations C and D swing around the Cam 1] on the shaft 82.

it will be noted that one loading station C could be used or many loading stations could be used and, instead of an oscillatory action, the loading station could have a completely rotary action around the shaft 82.

Two compacting stations A and B are fixed to frame 10. Two loading stations C and D are sandwiched between plates 12 which are supported on shaft 82.

The loading stations each have a hollow rigid body 32. Loading cups 24 are fixed to the outer end of the hollow rigid bodies 32. The loading cups are hollow and each reciprocably receive a plunger 23. Each plunger has a recess 20 in its outer end which may be in the shape of a hemisphere, and a flange on its inner end. A heating element 43 is disposed in each plunger to heat it so food will not adhere to the plunger and so the food bodies may be readily discharged. The inner ends of each plunger are slotted at 30 and follower rollers 38 are supported in the slots 39 on suitable transverse axles. Compression springs 26 are disposed between the flange on the plunger and the inner end of the cup to urge the plunger downward. An O-ring 22 is fitted into the outer periphery of the plunger to prevent food from entering between the plunger and loading cup.

When one of the loading stations C or D is in the loading position in which C is shown in P16. 1, a predetermined amount of food can be extruded into the loading cup 24 from spout 17. The loading station will then be swung by shaft 82 to bring station C into alignment with the compacting station A.

Cam 68 will swing lever 66 around its pivot so that plunger 13 will move downward in the loading cup 24 and compress the food therein. As the loading assembly swings the loading cup C toward the discharge position, follower 38 will be moved up by cam 11, carrying piston 23 outward to discharge the food ball into a suitable repository. Each of the compacting stations is made up of the hollow rigid body 45, which are fixed to the frame 10, the hollow cylindrical cups 14 which are fixed to the body 45 which slidably receive the plunger 13. The plungers 13 have an outside hemispherical recess 18' formed in their ends and are fixed to the base member 16'. Heaters [9 are disposed in the cup. The piston is held to the base by means of a bayonet joint 46 by which the cup can be readily removed for easy cleaning.

The bases 16' are connected by pivot 67 to the link 66 for the purpose which will be explained later.

The hopper is pivoted to the frame 10 by the pivot and it can be swung around the trunnions ml to a position to be cleaned. When in operating position, the leg 102 rests on the frame of the machine.

The food from the loading spout 17 is cut off by the knife 18 which has a sharpened blade. The knife is slidably mounted in a slide and is actuated by link 62 pivoted at 104 to the machine and having rollers 107 and 108 which drive it.

Since the plungers 13 and 23 are coated with Teflon material, the food releases readily from them and when heated by the heating elements, the food will quickly release when the food cups are swung to the dispensing position.

The foregoing specification sets forth the invention in its preferred practical forms but the structure shown is capable of modification within a range of equivalents without departing from the invention which is to be understood is broadly novel as is commensurate with the appended claims.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A machine for forming food into compact bodies comprising a loading cup,

a compacting piston for entering said loading cup for compacting food therein to a predetermined shape,

a loading station, a compacting station and a discharge sta- 40 tion,

means for swinging said loading cup to said loading station for loading, feeding means at said loading station for dispensing food into said loading cup,

means to swing said loading cup to said compacting station,

and means for moving said compacting piston into said loading cup at said compacting station to compact said food, and means to move said loading cup and to positive- 5 0 ly eject food at said discharge station,

and a piston in said loading cup,

means to swing said loading cup from said discharge station past said compacting station back to said loading station when said food is dispensed therefrom,

and cam means for moving said piston to the rim of said loading cup when said loading cup is in position at said discharge station whereby said food is positively ejected and dispensed.

2. The machine recited in claim 1 wherein said loading station comprises a hollow receptacle,

piston means in said hollow receptacle synchronized with the movement of said loading stations discharging predetermined amounts of food into said loading stations from said feeding means.

3. The machine recited in claim 1 wherein said loading stations comprise hollow loading cups supported on said machine,

lower piston members telescopically received in said lead ing cups,

and heating means on said receiving stations for heating said piston members.

4. The machine recited in claim 3 wherein a cup is formed in the ends of said pistons,

and spring means urging said pistons into said hollow receiving station.

5. The machine recited in claim 4 wherein said loading station has a follower thereon engaging said cam urging said piston to slide relative to said loading cup.

6. The machine recited in claim 3 wherein a second compacting station is disposed on said machine on the opposite side of said loading means from said first-mentioned compacting station,

and said receiving means has a second station spaced from said first compacting station,

said receiving stations are rotatably supported in such a way that one said station is adjacent said feeding means when the other is adjacent a discharge means.

7. A machine for making shaped food bodies comprising a hopper,

a loading spout connected to said hopper,

a compacting station,

a discharge station,

a lower cup,

said lower cup being swingably supported to swing about an axis whereby said lower cup is disposed in alignment with said loading spout in a first position and in alignment with said compacting station at a second position,

and is swung to said discharge station at said third position,

and means to positively eject said food at said discharge station,

and means to swing said station from said third position through said second position to said first position after food has been discharged therefrom,

8. The machine recited in claim 7 wherein said compacting station comprises a telescoping member slidably supported therein,

and cam means supported adjacent said axis moving said telescoping members toward said loading cup and toward said compacting station and discharging food from said lower cup.

9. The machine recited in claim 8 wherein means is provided to dispense a predetermined amount of food from said hopper into said lower cup.

10. The machine recited in claim 9 wherein a second lower cup is supported to swing about said axis,

said second cup being in said discharge position when said first-mentioned cup is in said loading position,

said second cup being in said loading position when said first-mentioned cup is in said discharge position.

11. The machine recited in claim 10 wherein a knife is slidably supported on said machine and means urging said knife across said loading spout to separate food from said loading spout into said lower cups,

and means actuating said knife in synchronism with the movement ofsaid machine.

12. The machine recited in claim 11 wherein cam means is supported adjacent said axis and is a platelike cam-engaging follower means on said telescoping members.

13. The machine recited in claim 12 wherein said compacting station comprises a hollow member and a piston member received in said hollow member,

and cam means on said machine synchronized with the movement of said lower cups for moving said piston of said compacting station into said lower cup when said lower cup is in alignment with said compacting station.

14. The machine recited in claim l3 wherein a single drive means is connected to means for swinging said lower cups, said compacting stations, said dispensing means, said discharge means and said knife.

15. The machine recited in claim 14 wherein said drive means comprises a vertical shaft,

said vertical shaft having first cam means and second cam means comprising means to actuate said discharge means and said compacting means,

said second cam means is on said shaft connected to means for actuating said knife.

16. The machine recited in claim 15 wherein said vertical shaft is operably connected to drive means to intermittently actuate said loading means.

17. The machine recited in claim 15 wherein a second shaft for operating said horizontal shaft is operably connected to said verticalshaft for swinging said lower cups.

18. A machine for forming food material into compact bodies comprising a feeding means,

at least one food cup,

an axle,

compacting means on said machine spaced from said feeding means,

and discharge means spaced from said feeding means and said compacting means,

means supporting said food cup to swing about said axle from said feeding means to said compacting means,

said machine having drive means connected to said feeding means synchronized to feed said food to said food cup at said feeding means, and connected to said compacting means to compact said food at said compacting station. 19. The machine recited in claim 18 wherein said drive means moves said food cup to said discharge means and means for heating at least said one food cup for releasing said food from said cup are included.

20. A machine for forming food material into compact bodies comprising feeding means, a hollow body, drive means for said machine, said drive means connected to said feeding means to cause it to feed a selected amount of said food material into said hollow body,

compacting means slidably received in said hollow body and having food-contacting surface area shaped to form said food material into said compact bodies, said drive means connected to said compacting means to cause it to compact said food material fed into said hollow body,

means for heating said food-contacting surface area for releasing said food material from said member after said food material is compacted,

an intermittent drive comprising a first gear and a second gear,

said first gear being connected to a driving member and said compacting means,

said first gear having a first set of teeth and a second set of teeth,

said first set of teeth being spaced from said second set diametrically opposite on said first gear,

a slot in said second gear spaced from the center thereof,

a third gear disposed coaxially with said second gear,

a pin attached to a side of said third gear and extending therefrom into said slot,

and a spring engaging said pin urging said pin toward one side of said slot. 21. A machine for forming food material into compact bodies comprising feeding means, a hollow body, drive means for said machine, said drive means connected to said feeding means to cause it to feed a selected amount of said food material into said hollow body,

compacting means slidably received in said hollow body and having food-contacting surface area shaped to form said food material into said compact bodies, said drive means connected to said compacting means to cause it to compact said food material fed into said hollow body,

means for heating said food-contacting surface area for releasing said food material from said member after said food material is compacted,

an intermittent drive comprising a first gear connected to said drive means and a second gear connected to said compacting means,

said first gear having a first set of teeth and a second set of teeth,

said first set of teeth being spaced from said second set of teeth on said first gear,

a slot in said second gear spaced from the center thereof,

athird gear disposed coaxially with said second'gear,

a pin attached to a side of said third gear and extending therefrom into said slot, a spring engaging said pin urging said pin toward one side of said slot, and a threaded member disposed in said gear for limiting the movement of said pin in said slot. 

1. A machine for forming food into compact bodies comprising a loading cup, a compacting piston for entering said loading cup for compacting food therein to a predetermined shape, a loading station, a compacting station and a discharge station, means for swinging said loading cup to said loading station for loading, feeding means at said loading station for dispensing food into said loading cup, means to swing said loading cup to said compacting station, and means for moving said compacting piston into said loading cup at said compacting station to compact said food, and means to move said loading cup and to positively eject food at said discharge station, and a piston in said loading cup, means to swing said loading cup from said discHarge station past said compacting station back to said loading station when said food is dispensed therefrom, and cam means for moving said piston to the rim of said loading cup when said loading cup is in position at said discharge station whereby said food is positively ejected and dispensed.
 2. The machine recited in claim 1 wherein said loading station comprises a hollow receptacle, piston means in said hollow receptacle synchronized with the movement of said loading stations discharging predetermined amounts of food into said loading stations from said feeding means.
 3. The machine recited in claim 1 wherein said loading stations comprise hollow loading cups supported on said machine, lower piston members telescopically received in said loading cups, and heating means on said receiving stations for heating said piston members.
 4. The machine recited in claim 3 wherein a cup is formed in the ends of said pistons, and spring means urging said pistons into said hollow receiving station.
 5. The machine recited in claim 4 wherein said loading station has a follower thereon engaging said cam urging said piston to slide relative to said loading cup.
 6. The machine recited in claim 3 wherein a second compacting station is disposed on said machine on the opposite side of said loading means from said first-mentioned compacting station, and said receiving means has a second station spaced from said first compacting station, said receiving stations are rotatably supported in such a way that one said station is adjacent said feeding means when the other is adjacent a discharge means.
 7. A machine for making shaped food bodies comprising a hopper, a loading spout connected to said hopper, a compacting station, a discharge station, a lower cup, said lower cup being swingably supported to swing about an axis whereby said lower cup is disposed in alignment with said loading spout in a first position and in alignment with said compacting station at a second position, and is swung to said discharge station at said third position, and means to positively eject said food at said discharge station, and means to swing said station from said third position through said second position to said first position after food has been discharged therefrom.
 8. The machine recited in claim 7 wherein said compacting station comprises a telescoping member slidably supported therein, and cam means supported adjacent said axis moving said telescoping members toward said loading cup and toward said compacting station and discharging food from said lower cup.
 9. The machine recited in claim 8 wherein means is provided to dispense a predetermined amount of food from said hopper into said lower cup.
 10. The machine recited in claim 9 wherein a second lower cup is supported to swing about said axis, said second cup being in said discharge position when said first-mentioned cup is in said loading position, said second cup being in said loading position when said first-mentioned cup is in said discharge position.
 11. The machine recited in claim 10 wherein a knife is slidably supported on said machine and means urging said knife across said loading spout to separate food from said loading spout into said lower cups, and means actuating said knife in synchronism with the movement of said machine.
 12. The machine recited in claim 11 wherein cam means is supported adjacent said axis and is a platelike cam-engaging follower means on said telescoping members.
 13. The machine recited in claim 12 wherein said compacting station comprises a hollow member and a piston member received in said hollow member, and cam means on said machine synchronized with the movement of said lower cups for moving said piston of said compacting station into said lower cup when said lower cup is in alignment with said compacting station.
 14. The machine recited in claim 13 wherein a single dRive means is connected to means for swinging said lower cups, said compacting stations, said dispensing means, said discharge means and said knife.
 15. The machine recited in claim 14 wherein said drive means comprises a vertical shaft, said vertical shaft having first cam means and second cam means comprising means to actuate said discharge means and said compacting means, said second cam means is on said shaft connected to means for actuating said knife.
 16. The machine recited in claim 15 wherein said vertical shaft is operably connected to drive means to intermittently actuate said loading means.
 17. The machine recited in claim 15 wherein a second shaft for operating said horizontal shaft is operably connected to said vertical shaft for swinging said lower cups.
 18. A machine for forming food material into compact bodies comprising a feeding means, at least one food cup, an axle, compacting means on said machine spaced from said feeding means, and discharge means spaced from said feeding means and said compacting means, means supporting said food cup to swing about said axle from said feeding means to said compacting means, said machine having drive means connected to said feeding means synchronized to feed said food to said food cup at said feeding means, and connected to said compacting means to compact said food at said compacting station.
 19. The machine recited in claim 18 wherein said drive means moves said food cup to said discharge means and means for heating at least said one food cup for releasing said food from said cup are included.
 20. A machine for forming food material into compact bodies comprising feeding means, a hollow body, drive means for said machine, said drive means connected to said feeding means to cause it to feed a selected amount of said food material into said hollow body, compacting means slidably received in said hollow body and having food-contacting surface area shaped to form said food material into said compact bodies, said drive means connected to said compacting means to cause it to compact said food material fed into said hollow body, means for heating said food-contacting surface area for releasing said food material from said member after said food material is compacted, an intermittent drive comprising a first gear and a second gear, said first gear being connected to a driving member and said compacting means, said first gear having a first set of teeth and a second set of teeth, said first set of teeth being spaced from said second set diametrically opposite on said first gear, a slot in said second gear spaced from the center thereof, a third gear disposed coaxially with said second gear, a pin attached to a side of said third gear and extending therefrom into said slot, and a spring engaging said pin urging said pin toward one side of said slot.
 21. A machine for forming food material into compact bodies comprising feeding means, a hollow body, drive means for said machine, said drive means connected to said feeding means to cause it to feed a selected amount of said food material into said hollow body, compacting means slidably received in said hollow body and having food-contacting surface area shaped to form said food material into said compact bodies, said drive means connected to said compacting means to cause it to compact said food material fed into said hollow body, means for heating said food-contacting surface area for releasing said food material from said member after said food material is compacted, an intermittent drive comprising a first gear connected to said drive means and a second gear connected to said compacting means, said first gear having a first set of teeth and a second set of teeth, said first set of teeth being spaced from said second set of teeth on said first gear, a slot in said second gear spaced from the center thereoF, a third gear disposed coaxially with said second gear, a pin attached to a side of said third gear and extending therefrom into said slot, a spring engaging said pin urging said pin toward one side of said slot, and a threaded member disposed in said gear for limiting the movement of said pin in said slot. 